In the past, there has been proposed an electromagnetic relay which opens and closes contacts depending on whether an electromagnetic block is excited (e.g., JP 2013-80692 A (hereinafter referred to as “document 1”). The electromagnetic relay disclosed in document 1 includes: an electromagnetic block; an armature to swing depending on whether the electromagnetic block is excited; a movable contact member which includes a movable contact and is to swing in accordance with swing of the armature; and a fixed contact member including a fixed contact to be in contact with and separate from the movable contact of the movable contact member.
In this electromagnetic relay, the armature is turned clockwise by spring force caused by a hinge spring while the electromagnetic block in not excited. At this time, the movable contact is separate from the fixed contact. When a coil is energized to excite the electromagnetic block, the armature is attracted to an iron core of the electromagnetic block and thereby turned counterclockwise. As a result, the movable contact is in contact with the fixed contact.
In the electromagnetic relay disclosed in the aforementioned document 1, a permanent magnet is placed close to the movable contact and the fixed contact in order to elongate and extinguish an arc which occurs when the movable contact moves apart from the fixed contact. Therefore, in a process of accommodating the permanent magnet in a case, foreign substances occurring in a production process may adhere to the permanent magnet, and thus the permanent magnet with such foreign substances may be accommodated in the case. Consequently, the foreign substances inside the case are likely to be present between the movable contact and the fixed contact, and this may cause incomplete contact. Or the foreign substances are likely to be present between moving parts and this causes malfunction.